Going Home
by x-men are awesome
Summary: <html><head></head>It's been almost 18 years since Ziva left Washington, D.C. without any explination for the team. Now, it's finally time to go home. How will everyone react when she shows up after all those years?</html>
1. Chapter 1

Ziva sat in her living room thinking. She knew that she needed to finish packing, but she would wait for her daughter to get home from her last day of school first. Her daughter's name was Deana Marie and she was seventeen years old. She had always been a quiet child and didn't have a lot of friends. She was very shy and didn't usually even say "hello" to someone until she knew them for at least three years. They moved so often anyway, it didn't matter if Deana made any friends, they would just have to leave them in a couple years.

Ziva thought back to the last time she had seen Deana's father. It had been almost eighteen years. She found out that she was pregnant shortly after she left. Deana had never met her father, and the man didn't even know about her. Deana's father… That would be very Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo.

* * *

><p><strong>Here is just the beginning of a new story that popped into my head. I couldn't sleep and decided to "free write" as McGee would say. I have been stuck on the other story I am writing, so I decided that "free writing" might help me get "unstuck." Please review. I will atempt to update both stories. I don't know how often I will be able to update as I have finals for college next week and need to get ready for them as well as finishing several projects for various classes. Once again, please review and tell me what you think.<strong>


	2. Chapter 2

*Flashback*

Ziva left Tony's apartment at 5:00 in the morning on that Thursday. She had had a great night with Tony the night before. It had started after work when the entire team went to the bar. Ziva only had one drink. Tony also had only one drink that night. They knew that they could not get drunk that night because they both had to go to work in the morning. None of the others had more than two drinks. The others started to leave, and soon it was only Ziva and Tony left. They sat there talking about the case they just finished, until, finally, Ziva admitted the one thing that she had kept from him for almost three years. She admitted that she loved him. Since neither of them were drunk, Tony knew that she was telling the truth, and he admitted that he loved her too. They both left the bar and went to his apartment. They had spent a wonderful night together and, before they fell asleep, Ziva promised Tony that she would never leave him. They both fell asleep in his bed, holding each other close, neither of them wanting to let go. Ziva got up early, like usual, and woke Tony long enough to tell him that she was going home to her apartment so that she could get ready for work. He kissed her and again told her that he loved her. She responded that she loved him too, then left. She got home and took a quick shower. She got dressed for work and was about to leave, when a bullet broke through the window in her living room and tore through her upper left arm. She dove for the couch and took cover.

Ziva crouched behind the couch in her apartment living room. There was a sniper shooting into her apartment through the window. She knew they were from Mossad. They had been sending her messages for some time. She had hoped that they would give up on her after she became a United States citizen, but if anything, they became even more determined. She knew that she needed to leave. Hopefully she would be able to lose them and start a new temporary life until they found her again. She had to think of her friends. No, her family. It's true that they didn't actually share blood, but they had become a better family to her that her own family had ever been.

Ziva noticed that the shooting had stopped and waited for another half an hour before moving from behind the couch. She quickly began to pack her clothes and other essentials into a suitcase. She grabbed the framed picture of the team off of her nightstand and put it in the suitcase as well. She zipped up her suitcase and put it beside the door to her apartment. She took six pieces of paper from her desk and sat at her kitchen table. She began to write letters to her teammates. Her family. She started with a letter to Palmer. Mainly saying that she would miss him and was sorry for leaving without telling anyone where she was going. Her letters to Ducky and McGee were similar, adding some personal notes of missing having tea with Ducky and telling McGee to not let Tony pick on him too much while she was gone. She then wrote the letter to Abby. It was harder for her to write this one. She knew that she and Abby had not always been very good friends, but now, she could barely imagine life without the bubbly Goth always around. Then she wrote her letter to Gibbs. It read,

Gibbs,

I know how you feel about apologies, but I am going to say it anyway. I am sorry for leaving without any warning. I know that you have a rule about never being unreachable, and I am hoping that you will forgive me for breaking it. I will call when it is once again safe for me to do so. Gibbs, you have been the best father that I could ever ask for. You are the closest thing I have to a father now. I love you. I wish that I could explain everything, but I cannot. Thank you for everything that you have done for me. I hope to be able to see you soon, but I cannot promise anything. Please do not try to find me.

Love,

Ziva

The last letter to write was the hardest of all. Tony. What could she say to him? She had promised him that she wouldn't leave him. Now she had to break that promise. She thought for a few minutes, then wrote,

Tony,

I cannot tell you how sorry I am for having to write this letter. I have to leave all of you. I can no longer stay. I have no choice. If I do not leave, I will be putting all of you in danger. I will return when it is safe for me to do so. I want you to know, I do not regret my night with you. I really do love you, Tony. Just like I said I do. My only regret concerning you is not admitting my feelings a long time ago. Try to be happy while I'm gone. I know it will be hard, but remember, I will be back. No matter how long it takes. I will be back when it is safe. I love you. I will come back to you.

Love,

Ziva

She folded up all the letters and put their names on each of them. She placed them in the center of the table with her cell phone on top of them. She went to the sink and cleaned up the bullet wound in her arm. She bandaged it up, then went to the front door of her apartment. She pulled out her key ring and took her apartment key off of it. She put it on the desk, picked up her suitcase, and left. She closed the door, but left it unlocked. She got in her car and left. She drove all day, then pulled into a small hotel in Jonesboro, AR. She stayed the night there, only using cash, got up early in the morning, checked out, and drove to a car dealership. She sold her car and bought an older car that she knew the team wouldn't recognize as hers. It wasn't anything that she would normally drive. It was a blue Cadillac Seville. After she got the new car, she kept driving. She finally stopped in Bryan, Texas. She knew that nobody from the team would try to find her there. She used the last of her cash to rent a small apartment and buy enough food for almost a month. She found a job as a waitress at a small coffee shop and settled in.

A couple months later, she started getting sick in the mornings. She went to work with a bottle of Ginger Ale every morning and sipped it all day. After two full weeks of being sick every morning, her boss finally convinced her to go to the doctor. She found out that she was pregnant. She knew that Tony was the father. She also knew that she could not tell him about the baby. Ziva was happy that she was going to have a baby, but she was sad because she could not share the joy with Tony. The months passed, and before she knew it, she was nine months pregnant. She had just gotten home from work when she went into labor. She went to the hospital and gave birth to a little girl. She hadn't really gotten around to deciding on a name, but remembered that Tony had mentioned one night at work that if he ever had a daughter, he would name her Deana. Ziva decided on the name Deana Marie. Marie was a variant of Mary, a common name in Israel. Within two months of Deana's birth, Ziva quit her job and moved out of her apartment. She drove until she reached Farmington, New Mexico. She found another small apartment and moved in. She got another job as a waitress, this time in a steakhouse. She stayed there for almost two years, then decided it was time to move on. She quit her job and moved out. This time, she went up north. She drove to Colville, Washington and found another small apartment and another waitress job. She stayed there for three years, then moved again. By this time, Deanna was five years old. Ziva moved to Spring Creek, Nevada. She enrolled Deanna in school and got a job at a fast food restaurant. She began teaching Deanna self defense and knife training. They stayed there for two years, then moved to Green Valley, Arizona. She enrolled Deanna in another school and got another job. They stayed there for three years, then moved to Scott City, Kansas.

Now Deanna was ten. Ziva began to tell her a little bit about her team and her past life. She told Deanna why they had to move so much, and why they couldn't go to the one place that Ziva thought of as home. Over the years, Ziva had kept track of how the team was doing and what Mossad was doing. She kept track as the people that wanted her dead, died themselves. She knew that Tony was still single, and had not had a single girlfriend after her. She knew that Tim and Abby had dated for a while without Gibbs knowing, then had gotten Gibbs permission to get married. Gibbs had married Hollis Mann, then gotten a divorce after almost two years. They just weren't right for each other. They were just friends now. She knew that there were still ten people that wanted to kill her. She knew that one of them was her father.

Ziva told Deanna all about Tony. How he used to be a player, but hadn't dated anyone since she had left. Through the stories that Ziva told her, Deanna learned to think of the team as her family too. Even though she had never met them, she would know them when she saw them.

Ziva and Deanna stayed in Scott City, Kansas for two years before they moved again. This time to Whitefish, Montana. They stayed there for three years before moving again. They moved back south, to Alpine, Texas, staying in a hotel one night on the way. Now Deanna was fifteen. Ziva decided that she could tell her about Somalia. All that had happened to her there. All the torture and rape from all those men. She told of her rescue by Tony, Tim, and Gibbs. She didn't leave out anything at all. Both Ziva and Deanna had nightmares that night, but they comforted each other and the nightmares stopped shortly after. They lived there for two years before Ziva got word that the last of the people that wanted her dead, were dead themselves. The last one to die was her father. With his death, Ziva was free to finally go home.

*End Flashback*

Ziva was pulled from her memory as the front door opened and Deanna walked in. "Shalom, Ima," Deanna said. "Shalom, Deanna," Ziva replied. "Where are we going this time? Do you know?" Deanna asked as she saw all the boxes in the living room, waiting to be taken out to the car. Ziva smiled, then said, "Yes, Deanna, I know where we are going. We're going home. Back to Washington, D.C. Back to NCIS." Deanna smiled, then ran to her room to pack her clothes. She only had enough clothes for two weeks. They kept very few personal belongings with having to move so often and having to put it all in the car with them. They each only had two boxes of personal belongings, and that included their clothes. They finished packing, then took all the boxes out to the car. They loaded the car and started to drive. They stayed in hotels two nights, then pulled into Washington, D.C. at noon on the second day. They went to NCIS and Ziva parked her car in the visitor parking. She then sat in the car with Deanna for half an hour, trying to get up the nerve to go inside.

She finally got out of the car and Deanna got out with her. Ziva locked the car, then the two of them walked into the building. They got visitor passes from the front desk, then went up to the bullpen. The elevator opened, and Ziva cautiously stepped out with Deanna right behind her. She slowly walked over to the team's bullpen and stood at the entrance to it. Tony, Tim, and Gibbs were all there. Her old desk was empty, and looked like it had been empty for some tome. She knew that they had never kept a replacement for more than a month at a time, and Vance had finally given up trying to find one. All conversation stopped between the men as they saw her standing there. Tim was the first to speak. "Ziva," he said in a shocked, and quiet voice. All three men stared at her, then Gibbs stood and walked over to her. He stood facing her for almost a full minute, then lifted a hand, and slapped the back of her head. Tears welled up in Ziva's eyes and she threw her arms around him. She began to cry openly as she clung to him. He wrapped his arms around her tightly and held her as she wept. Deanna just stood there a few feet away, watching. The only time she had seen her mother cry like that was when she told her about Somalia.

Ziva stood in Gibbs arms for fifteen minutes before they pulled apart from each other. Ziva slowly walked over to Tony and stood in front of him. Tony stood up and walked around to the front of the desk. Ziva turned to face him, then looked to the ground. She felt him hand under her chin. He lifted her face to look at him. Tony looked into her eyes. Ziva saw love in them. Tony smiled at her, and said, "I forgive you, Ziva. I know that you wouldn't leave without telling us where you went without a good reason." Ziva smiled, and wrapped her arms around him. He held her close and whispered in her ear, "I still love only you." Ziva felt tears run down her cheeks, and she whispered into his ear, "I still love only you too." They pulled apart, and Ziva said, "I have something that I need to tell you." "What is it?" Tony asked. Ziva took a deep breath, then said, "Deanna, come over here." Deanna stepped into the bullpen and stood beside Ziva. Ziva took a deep breath, and said, "Tony, everyone, this is Deanna. She is my daughter. She is seventeen years old. I had her nine months after I left." The team was shocked. Deanna looked around, and said, "My mom has told me all about you. She has kept track of what you have been doing over the years. I'm glad I finally get to meet you." Gibbs asked the question that they were all wondering, "Who is Deanna's father, Ziva?" Tony looked into Deanna's eyes, and saw the same eyes that he saw in the mirror every morning. His own. Tony spoke up before Ziva and said, "I am." Ziva smiled and nodded. Gibbs walked over to Tony and slapped the back of his head. Then he slapped the back of Ziva's head again. The two of them chuckled, and hugged again. "I'm sorry, Tony. When I found out I was pregnant, I wanted to tell you, but they would have been able to track me down if I did. The reason that I left was because Mossad tried to kill me again. I didn't want to put any of you in harm's way because of my past. I know I disappeared for eighteen years, and I am sorry. But I am back now, and I wish to continue my life here. I know it will not be like it was before, but I want to come back to work here. I am tired of being a waitress or cashier. I want to be a special agent again." Gibbs smiled, and said, "I knew you would. I will see what I can do. In the meantime, you had better go and talk to Abby."


End file.
